2025 Subaru Outback Reviews, Pricing & Specs

Canada supports wagons more than our neighbours to the south do, but our options are nonetheless dwindling. The Subaru Outback stands out for adopting all the mandatory crossover trends such as chunky wheel-arch flares, front and rear fascias designed to mimic the look of skid plates, and a particularly chunky roof rack setup. It all works together well enough that even casual observers will understand the intent behind the look: this is a car that’s designed to drive far off the beaten path. Note the Crimson Red Pearl paint on our U.S. test unit is not available in Canada, but we think the Outback looks best in muted earthy shades anyway.

Subaru has put much of its focus on shoppers who may need to take their Outback through the dirt. Hinging so much on a seemingly small segment of crossover buyers might seem foolish, but it has paid off handsomely for Subaru. The Japanese brand’s three best-selling nameplates — Crosstrek, Forester, and Outback — all adopt a similar countenance. While the Forester is a true crossover, the Crosstrek and Outback are both lifted versions of passenger cars, and both have been significantly more popular than their less pumped-up siblings.

There aren’t any major changes to the Subaru Outback for 2025. Heated front seats and a heated steering wheel are standard in Canada. The base Convenience and Touring trims use cloth upholstery and have 17-inch wheels. Onyx and the off-road-biased Wilderness models are attired in Subaru’s StarTex synthetic leather, which is easy to keep clean, and these trims are where heated outboard rear seats become standard. All trims but Convenience get a power moonroof and a portrait-oriented 11.6-inch infotainment system. Subaru’s DriverFocus anti-distraction tech, built-in navigation, and leather upholstery come in at the Limited and Premier grades. We spent time testing the Subaru Outback Premier XT trim that upgrades to Nappa leather upholstery and ventilated front seats.

The Subaru Outback’s exterior design serves as a rugged shell over a well-executed interior. The use of chrome and glossy black plastic is kept to a reasonable level. There are actual gauges ahead of the driver that are easy to read at a glance and that flank a small digital display offering useful information that includes current fuel economy, distance to empty and a secondary speed readout in clear numerals.

As with all Subarus, under the Outback's hood sits a horizontally opposed "Boxer" engine. It's available in two forms. The standard engine is a 2.5-litre four-cylinder that spins out 182 horsepower and 176 pound-feet of torque. The Outback Wilderness and trims appended with an XT designation benefit from a turbocharged 2.4-litre engine that produces 260 hp and 277 lb-ft of torque. Both versions run on regular unleaded gas.

A continuously variable transmission (CVT) — dubbed Lineartronic in Subaru speak — routes power through a standard all-wheel drive (AWD) system. The turbocharged engine in our test car accelerates the rugged wagon in smart fashion, though it’s far from a performance car. Having driven Subaru Outback models powered by the barely adequate base engine, we’d recommend stepping up to the upgraded engine if your budget can support it.

Outback owners benefit from 22 centimetres of ground clearance and Subaru’s X-Mode, which optimizes the engine, transmission, AWD system, and Vehicle Dynamics Control software to maximize traction on slippery surfaces. The Outback Wilderness bumps ground clearance to 24.1 centimetres and adds a front skid plate, which makes this the best version for serious adventurers. Onyx and Wilderness models also gain extra Snow/Dirt and Deep Snow/Mud X-Mode settings.

Smooth and comfortable are the most apt descriptors for the Subaru Outback’s feel on the road. It’s not floaty like old-school land yachts, but its soft suspension tuning and thick tire sidewalls mean it eats bumps and potholes for breakfast without spilling your morning cup of coffee. The Outback’s steering is light, its throttle is smooth, and its brakes are powerful, all of which make Subaru’s hiked-up wagon an amenable companion on the bumpiest roadways.

Demerits are few but noteworthy. Subaru’s stop/start technology shuts off and restarts the engine in a way that makes us want to turn this feature off (which you can do in the vehicle’s settings). The CVT is generally unobtrusive and the faux “gears” programmed into its electronic brain are appreciated as they keep the engine from hitting an irritating and droning note, but it gets tripped up and is slow to respond when transitioning between gentle and stern throttle applications.

The Outback’s wagon shape delivers major bonus points for practicality. As much as we may prefer a high seating position when sharing the road with massive heavy-duty pickup trucks, we also appreciate the easy entry and exit a lower-slung chassis offers. It’s also easier to load the roof rack due to the lower roof height. The low centre of gravity, aided by Subaru’s long-standing use of a flat-four engine design, means the Outback is quick to change direction, too.

There’s a lot of easily accessible cargo space inside the Outback. While measurements of 923 litres with the rear seat up and 2,141 litres with the bench folded are a bit smaller than crossovers like the Honda CR-V and Toyota RAV4, the cargo area’s flat floor and square shape mean the available space is as useful as possible. The wagon’s lower roofline doesn’t diminish passenger space, either. At 3,044 litres, the Outback’s total passenger volume is larger than its crossover competition. That includes more front headroom and legroom than the CR-V, though the rear seat is a bit smaller in every meaningful dimension.

Buyers should test drive several versions of the Subaru Outback before making a purchase decision, though. Besides the two engine options, the differences between the Limited or Premier grades and the lifted Wilderness with its knobby tires and cladded chassis are meaningful enough that they drive somewhat differently. Buyers who plan to tow should also note that the standard towing capacity of 1,225 kilograms (2,700 pounds) increases to 1,588 kilograms (3,500 pounds) with the turbocharged engine option.

The 2025 Subaru Outback’s technology package is a mixed bag. The 11.6-inch touchscreen most Outbacks are fitted with is bright and has big icons that are easy to jab without looking away from the road. On the other hand, the Starlink infotainment system is slow to respond in general and especially lethargic right upon startup. It lags for the first minute or so after starting the car before it settles into its normal just-sort-of-lackadaisical demeanour. Pulling addresses up in its TomTom-based navigation system takes patience, too.

Fortunately, Apple CarPlay and Android Auto are included (wireless unless you have the base model’s twin 7-inch displays) and work as you’d expect. Our test car’s Harman Kardon-branded 12-speaker audio system worked well, though frequent Starlink disturbances alerting us to navigational commands disconcertingly limited all other audio to the rear speakers.

The dashboard should appeal to buyers who aren’t yet comfortable with every new piece of technology a designer could throw at it. On the flip side, tech-savvy buyers may be put off by the smattering of buttons and knobs on the steering wheel and along the sides of the massive central screen. And despite this raft of physical controls, it’s still necessary to dive into the touchscreen for common tasks like using the climate control and audio systems. Amazingly, the 2025 Outback Premier XT includes a CD player that’s perfect for jamming out to all your favorite grunge-era compilations. Speaking of old tech, a USB-A port joins a more modern USB-C port in the centre console for those with older devices who don’t want to invest in an adapter.

Subaru’s EyeSight driver-assist technology, standard on Outback, uses two cameras mounted atop the windshield near the rearview mirror to monitor the road ahead and enable various features. These include adaptive cruise control with lane centring, forward collision warning, automatic emergency braking, lane-keep assist, and automatic emergency steering. While the EyeSight system does keep the Outback in its lane, it does so with more side-to-side movement than we’d like. We noted regular corrections from left to right instead of a solid sense of the straight ahead.

Touring and higher trim levels also have blind-spot monitoring with lane-change assist and rear cross-traffic alert. This tech worked exactly as intended, keeping us from changing lanes or backing into traffic when cars were present. We found the available DriverFocus system that monitors for driver distraction a little less accurate, with a few false notifications appearing in the instrument cluster even when our eyes were indeed on the road. Still, we’d rather have a few false positives than a system that doesn’t work at all.

The 2024 Outback earned a Top Safety Pick designation from the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS), and since the 2025 is mostly unchanged, it ought to perform equally well in IIHS testing. The 2025 Outback also received the top five-star overall safety rating from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA).

There aren’t many vehicles in 2025 that compete on equal footing with the Subaru Outback. Buyers would do well to consider Subaru’s own Forester along with popular crossovers like the Honda CR-V and Toyota RAV4, but none of those offer the Outback’s wagon shape. The Audi A6 Allroad is more than double the price. The Volvo V60 Cross Country and Volvo V90 Cross Country are closer in price and similar in intent, but they’re still firmly in luxury vehicle territory.

While we’ll stop short of calling the 2025 Subaru Outback a one-of-one unicorn, we’ll merely point out that its base price of $37,174 (including a $2,295 destination charge and other fees) is well below the average cost of a new car in 2025, which in Canada hovers just shy of $50,000. Our loaded Premier XT with all the bells and whistles rings the register to $50,574, fees in. That’s not cheap, but it at least strikes us as a rational sum for a new car that’s so well equipped.

If you’re looking for the most fuel-efficient Outback, the base 2.5-litre model earns Natural Resources Canada ratings of 9.2 litres per 100 kilometres in the city, 7.3 on the highway, and 8.3 combined. Turbocharged XT models go up to 10.6 L/100 km city, 8.1 highway, and 9.5 combined. The Wilderness model’s fuel economy is even higher at 11.0 city, 9.0 highway, and 10.1 combined.

All those numbers are competitive with the non-hybrid crossovers you may shop the Outback against, but it’s worth noting there aren’t any fuel-sipping hybrids in the Outback lineup. It’s possible that an Outback hybrid will appear as part of an upcoming redesign, which is expected to leave the Outback looking more like a crossover than a wagon. So, if you like what you see in the current Outback, now may be the time to pull the trigger.

Note: Images show a US model.